Simultaneous storage and network transmission of multimedia data with video host that requests stored data according to response time from a server

ABSTRACT

A digital multimedia newsroom production system allows users of the system to create, browse and catalog multimedia assets. The system includes a multimedia capture and encoding system that captures multimedia data, and substantially simultaneously provides a first compressed version of the multimedia data having a first resolution, and a second compressed version of the multimedia data having a second resolution that is different than the first resolution; a multimedia storage system, coupled to the multimedia capture and encoding system, that stores multimedia information including the first and second compressed versions of the multimedia data; and a video editing and playback system coupled to the multimedia storage system. The video editing and playback system includes editing circuitry that generates a composition that uses a portion of the first compressed version, and playback circuitry that plays the composition using a portion of the second compressed version that corresponds to the portion of the first compressed version. The multimedia storage system stores multimedia information including the compressed versions of the multimedia data, and provides to a network the first compressed version of the multimedia data substantially simultaneously as the first compressed version is stored.

CROSS-REFERENCE OF RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuing application of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 09/173,815, filed Oct. 16, 1998, now abandoned, which is acontinuing application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/019,945,filed Feb. 6, 1998, now abandoned, which is a continuing application ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/832,868, filed Apr. 4, 1997, nowabandoned.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to a multimedia system withimproved data management mechanisms, and more particularly to a methodand apparatus for substantially simultaneously encoding multipleversions of a multimedia data signal, and providing substantiallysimultaneous access and storage of the multiple versions, acorrespondence between the multiple versions being generated duringstorage.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Over the last few decades, the process for producing broadcast newsprograms has undergone several changes. Increased competition broughtabout by the expansion of cable outlets and other news sources, andchanges in technology, have forced news broadcasters to use theirresources more effectively.

To produce a news program, a typical news production organizationperforms four major operations, which are illustrated in FIG. 1. Inparticular, the operations include video production 10, graphicsproduction 12, text production 14 and on-air operations 16.Unfortunately, the results of these operations rarely are combinedeffectively until the actual broadcast of the news program.

Video production 10 includes generating and editing motion video forbroadcasting using video information retrieved from a video archive orproduced from various sources (e.g., cameras, either studio or fieldrecorded). Text production 14 includes scripting and editing of textgathered from several sources including a text archive. Similar to videoproduction 10 and text production 14, graphics production 12 includesgenerating and editing graphics data, such as titling and still imagesgathered from a variety of sources.

In order to produce a final news product for broadcast, results fromvideo production 10, graphics production 12 and text production 14 mustbe properly integrated during the on-air operations 16. Existing newsbroadcast systems are capable of such integration. In particular, thesesystems permit complete management of the audio and video elements ofthe news program from acquisition, through editing, distribution andon-air play.

A conventional process for integrating the major operations isillustrated in FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 2, a disk-based video productionoperation 30 is integrated with a media production process 32 and on airoperations 34. The use of disk-based digital audio/video storagesystems, digital networks, and digital non-linear editing systems hasallowed for successful integration of video production, graphicsproduction and on-air operations. Several products are available fromAvid Technology, Inc., Tewksbury, Mass., for providing the integrationprocess shown in FIG. 2.

The newsroom text production and management system 14 of FIG. 2 is thesame text production and management system 14 shown in FIG. 1. Althoughnewsroom computer systems have been in use for several years, thesecomputer systems are predominantly text based, and have limitedintegration capabilities with tape-based or disk-based audio/videoproduction systems. Newsroom computer systems, such as those previouslyavailable from BaSys, and now from Avid Technology under the nameNetStation, have developed from systems which were developed to receivenews agency copy and provide simple word processing and communicationsfacilities. In more recent years, add-ons of various kinds have beendeveloped which provide some integration of the text productionoperation with the audio/video production operation. However, onlylimited integration of the text and audio/video data has been achieved,thereby providing only limited multimedia capability.

In a typical news production organization, a journalist develops an ideafor a story, and determines how various audio/video clips should be usedin the story. Often, the journalist will preview audio/video footagethat has been archived, and select portions of the archived footage,called clips, for use in the story. Then, the journalist providesinstructions to an editor who edits the clips to produce a final form ofthe story that is suitable for broadcast.

In some instances, particularly if the story is complex, the journalistmay wish to prepare a rough form of the story and provide the rough formto the editor for final preparation. A rough form of what the journalistexpects for the final form of the story is better than verbal or handwritten instructions. To this end, if the journalist wishes toincorporate video from a previous broadcast that is contained in a videotape archive, the journalist must request that the tape be retrievedmanually, and must then review the tape in an edit bay or a similarlocation. The journalist may then perform some preliminary editing ofthe archived video, with other material such as video of recent events,text and graphics received over news wire services, and archived text,before providing the rough form to the editor and instructing the editorto prepare the final form of the story for broadcast. In present daysystems, the capability to perform the above-identified functions is notavailable to the journalist in a newsroom system, but as discussedabove, must be performed remotely, for example, in an edit bay.

Furthermore, a journalist may wish to prepare a story about a particularevent while the event unfolds. If the journalist has access to a livefeed of the event, it is likely that the journalist will record theevent on a video tape using a video tape recorder (VTR), or in a file ona disk using a non-linear disk-based audio/video production system. Ifthe journalist is recording the event on video tape and wishes toprepare a rough form of the story by integrating recorded portions ofevent, the journalist must stop the VTR, and rewind the video tape tothe specific recorded portions intended for integration. If newdevelopments occur while the journalist is using the VTR to integratethe recorded portions, the live feed of these new developments will belost unless the live feed is recorded simultaneously on a second tapeusing a second VTR. Similarly, if the journalist is using a conventionalnon-linear disk-based audio/video production system to record the livefeed in a file, the journalist must terminate the recording before thejournalist can access the recorded portions from the file forintegration into the story. To record additional developments of theevent on the disk-based system, the journalist must record theadditional developments into a second file. Storage of the event amongmultiple tapes and files is inefficient and requires additional overheadto keep track of multiple tapes and files.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An embodiment of the invention is directed to a multimedia system thatincludes a multimedia capture and encoding system that capturesmultimedia data, and provides a first compressed version of themultimedia data having a first resolution and a second compressedversion of the multimedia data having a second resolution that isdifferent from the first resolution. The multimedia system furtherincludes a multimedia storage system, coupled to the multimedia captureand encoding system, that stores multimedia information including thefirst and second compressed versions of the multimedia data. Themultimedia system further includes a video editing and playback systemcoupled to the multimedia storage system. The video editing and playbacksystem includes editing circuitry that generates a composition that usesa portion of the first compressed version, and playback circuitry thatplays the composition using a portion of the second compressed versionthat corresponds to the portion of the first compressed version.

Another embodiment of the invention is directed to a multimedia systemthat includes a multimedia capture and encoding system that capturesmultimedia data, and provides a compressed version of the multimediadata having a first resolution. The multimedia system further includes amultimedia storage system, coupled to the multimedia capture andencoding system that stores multimedia information including thecompressed version of the multimedia data, and provides to a network thecompressed version of the multimedia data substantially simultaneouslyas the compressed version is stored.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the multimedia storagesystem includes a server coupled to the network that sends thecompressed version on the network.

According to another embodiment, the multimedia system further includesa video host coupled to the network that sends a first request to theserver for a first portion of the compressed version of the multimediadata, determines an amount of time to wait based on a length of thefirst portion and a response time of the first request, and sends asecond request to the server for a second portion of the compressedversion of the multimedia data after waiting the determined amount oftime.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present invention, reference is madeto the accompanying drawings which are incorporated herein by referenceand in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating components of a typicaltelevision news operation;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating components of a typicaltelevision news operation having audio/video production capabilitiesintegrated with on-air operations;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a digital multimedia system according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a digital multimedia system having acapture manager and an asset manager according to an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a digital multimedia system having multiplelow resolution encoders and multiple high resolution encoders accordingto an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a digital multimedia system having a browseserver according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of a method performed by a video host of adigital multimedia system, according to an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of a method performed by a browse server of adigital multimedia system, according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 9 is a view of a dialog window of a capture manager of a digitalmultimedia system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a digital multimedia system having a corenewsroom system, a multimedia archive, and a video production system,according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a view of a graphics user interface of a digital multimedianewsroom production system according to an embodiment of the presentinvention; and

FIG. 12 is a diagram of a multimedia file structure according to anembodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 3 shows a digital multimedia system 50 for managing motion videodata in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The multimediasystem 50 enables one or more users to manipulate effectively motionvideo data, text, graphics and audio (i.e., multimedia data) andgenerate a multimedia composition. In particular, the system 50substantially simultaneously encodes a low resolution version and a highresolution version of multimedia data. A journalist using the systemgenerates a composition using a portion of the low resolution version,and an editor plays the composition using a portion of the highresolution version that corresponds to the portion of the low resolutionversion.

The multimedia system 50 includes a multimedia capture and encodingsystem 52 that captures multimedia data, and substantiallysimultaneously provides the first compressed version of the multimediadata having the first resolution, and the second compressed version ofthe multimedia data having the second resolution that is different thanthe first resolution.

The multimedia system further includes a multimedia storage system 54,coupled to the multimedia capture and encoding system 52, that storesmultimedia information including the first and second compressedversions of the multimedia data. In particular, the multimedia storagesystem 54 includes a digital computer-readable and writable non-volatilerandom-access medium, such as a magnetic disk, for storing the first andsecond compressed versions digitally and non-linearly.

The multimedia system 50 further includes a video editing and playbacksystem 56 coupled to the multimedia storage system 54. The video editingand playback system 56 includes editing circuitry 58 that generates acomposition that uses a portion of the first compressed version, andplayback circuitry 60 that plays the composition using a portion of thesecond compressed version that corresponds to the portion of the firstcompressed version. The composition includes one or more data structuresthat define a list of video entries. Each video entry indicates a nameof a file containing video information, and a range of the file thatdefines a portion of the video information. The editing circuitry 58 andthe playback circuitry 60 are typically used by a journalist and aneditor, respectively. Alternatively, both the editing circuitry 58 andthe playback circuitry 60 may reside on a single graphics workstation.

Another embodiment of the invention is a newsroom production system 700which is illustrated in FIG. 4. The system 700 substantiallysimultaneously encodes a low resolution version and a high resolutionversion of multimedia data, and enables a journalist using the system togenerate a composition using a portion of the low resolution version,and an editor to play the composition using a portion of the highresolution version that corresponds to the portion of the low resolutionversion. As in the embodiment of FIG. 3, the system 700 enables a newsproduction organization to manipulate effectively multimedia dataincluding motion video clips from a variety of sources, as well as text,live presentations by announcers and associated graphics.

The system 700 is similar to the system 50 described above in that thesystem 700 includes a multimedia capture and encoding system 710, amultimedia storage system 730 and a video editing and playback system750. The system further includes a first computer network 704 and asecond computer network 706 that are coupled to a bridge 708. Each ofthe multimedia capture and encoding system 710, the multimedia storagesystem 730, and the video editing and playback system 750 is coupled tothe first network 704 and the second network 706. According to anembodiment of the invention, the network 706 is an ATM network such asAvidNet available from Avid Technology, Inc., Tewksbury, Mass., which isdescribed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/215,849, which ishereby incorporated by reference. The system 700 also includes an input702 for receiving multimedia data, from one or more sources.

The multimedia capture and encoding system 710 includes a first encoder712 coupled to the first network 704, a second encoder 716 coupled tothe second network 706, and an encoding controller 714 interconnectedbetween the encoders 712 and 716. The encoding controller 714 is alsoreferred to as a capture manager. Each of the encoders 712 and 716 isfurther coupled to the video input 702 to receive the multimedia data.

The multimedia storage system 730 includes a first video server 732coupled to the first network 704, a second video server 736 coupled tothe second network 706, and an asset manager 734. The asset manager 734is coupled to each of the second video server 736, the capture manager714 and the second encoder 716.

The video editing and playback system 750 includes a first workstation742 coupled to the first graphics network 704, and a second graphicsworkstation 744 coupled to the second network 706. The first graphicsworkstation includes first editing circuitry 752 coupled to the firstnetwork 704. The second graphics workstation includes playback circuitry754 coupled to the second network 706, and second editing circuitry 756coupled to the second network 706. Alternatively, the playback circuitry754 and the second editing circuitry 756 may reside on separate graphicsworkstations each of which is coupled to the second network 706. Boththe playback circuitry 754 and the second editing circuitry 756 arefurther coupled to the asset manager 734.

When the system 700 is in operation, the first and second encoders 712and 716 substantially simultaneously receive a multimedia data signalfrom the input 702. The first encoder 712 outputs over the network 704 asignal containing a first compressed version of the multimedia data. Thesecond encoder 716 outputs over the network 706 a signal containing asecond compressed version of the multimedia data. The resolution of thefirst compressed version is different than the resolution of the secondcompressed version. In one embodiment, the first and second resolutionsdiffer from a time perspective so that one of the versions uses lessframes than the other over a given interval of time. In anotherembodiment, the first and second resolutions differ spatially, i.e., inthe number of pixels used to represent a still image, so that one of theversions provides images of a better clarity than the other version. Inyet another embodiment, the first and second resolutions differ bothtemporally, i.e., the number of images per second of motion video, andspatially. In a particular embodiment of the invention, the firstcompressed version is an MPEG-1 (ISO/IEC 11172-1 through 9) encodedstream, and the second compressed version is a 60 field per secondmotion-JPEG (MJPEG) encoded stream of broadcast television qualityimages so that the first and second compressed versions have differenttemporal and spatial resolutions.

The first video server 732 receives and stores the first compressedversion from the first encoder 712. The second video server 736 receivesand stores the second compressed version from the second encoder 716.Storage of the first and second compressed versions occurs substantiallysimultaneously. In a preferred embodiment, the first video server 732 isa low resolution video server that stores low resolution multimedia datasuch as Avid BrowseServer, and the second video server 736 is a highresolution video server that stores high resolution multimedia data suchas Avid MediaServer. Both Avid MediaServer and Avid BrowseServer aremotion video storage devices available from Avid Technology, Inc.,Tewksbury, Mass. The capture manager 714 controls the asset manager 734so that a correspondence between the first and second compressedversions is generated. In particular, the asset manager 734 initiallycreates and then maintains a mapping of the first and second compressedversions. In one embodiment, the mapping is achieved by storing fileidentification information and timecode data in a file. If a filenameand timecode range identifying a portion of the first compressed versionis provided to the asset manager 734, the asset manager can identify aportion of the second compressed version that corresponds to the portionof the first compressed version. In particular, the asset manager 734searches the file and retrieves a filename and a timecode rangeidentifying the portion of the second compressed version thatcorresponds to the portion of the first compressed version. Accordingly,correspondence between the first and second compressed versions isachieved.

Such a mapping mechanism may be implemented by using a form of dynamiclinking as disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 5,267,351 toReber et al., which is hereby incorporated by reference. In particular,the asset manager 734 may maintain indications of high resolution videofiles which are equivalent to low resolution files. This equivalency canbe used to automatically and dynamically associate the appropriate highresolution files with the low resolution files used by the journalist tocreate a multimedia composition.

If timecode information is unavailable on the audio/video feed receivedby the input 702, the capture manager 714 ensures that timecodeinformation is included in the encoded multimedia data. In particular,if timecode information is not included, either the capture manager 714or the asset manager 734 adds timecode information to the secondcompressed version before it is stored in the second video server 736.

The operation of the system 700 will now be described in connection witha newsroom setting. A journalist in the newsroom operates the firstworkstation 742 and an editor operates the second workstation 744. Thejournalist generates a composition that uses a portion of the firstcompressed version of the multimedia data having the first resolution.It is not necessary that the composition be suitable for broadcast.Rather, the composition may be a rough form of the journalist's storythat an editor can convert into a final form for broadcast. Inparticular, the journalist sends the representation of the composition(not including the media data) to the editor across the first and secondnetworks 704 and 706 through the bridge 708. When the editor receivesthe composition, the editor can play the composition on the secondworkstation 744. When the second workstation 744 plays the composition,the second workstation plays a portion of the second compressed versionof the multimedia data having the second resolution rather than theportion of the first compressed version used by the journalist. Theeditor converts the composition into the final broadcast form byperforming editing operations, such as adding blend and fade transitionsbetween audio/video portions and other special effects, using the secondediting circuitry 756.

It should be understood that when the journalist generates thecomposition using the first workstation 742, the first compressedversion of the multimedia data is transferred only through the firstnetwork 704. Similarly, when the editor plays the composition using thesecond workstation 744, the second compressed version of the multimediadata is transferred only through the second network 706.

Also, it should be understood that, using the system 700, neither thejournalist nor the editor leaves their respective workstations toretrieve audio/video footage for integration into the composition. Thejournalist has access to the first compressed version stored in thefirst video server 732. Similarly, the editor has access to the secondcompressed version stored in the second video server 736.

Another embodiment of the invention is directed to a newsroom productionsystem 800 which is illustrated in FIG. 5. This embodiment is similar tothe embodiment of FIG. 4 except that it includes multiple first encoders812, multiple second encoders 816, and multiple first workstations 842.As in the other embodiments of the invention previously described, anews production organization can utilize effectively the system 800 togenerate news stories that include broadcast quality motion video clipsfrom a variety of sources. The encoders 812 are low resolution encodersthat simultaneously output low resolution compressed versions ofmultimedia data from various sources. The encoders 816 are highresolution encoders that simultaneously output high resolutioncompressed versions of the multimedia data from the various sources.

A benefit of the system 800 is that the multimedia data transferredthrough the first network 804 is low resolution data which requires lessbandwidth than high resolution data. Accordingly, several workstations842 can be connected to the first network 804 without experiencingsubstantial degradation in performance of the first network 804. Themultimedia data transferred through the second network 806 is highresolution data which uses more network bandwidth than low resolutiondata. Nevertheless, the second network 806 provides suitable performancesince it is isolated from network traffic caused by the firstworkstations 842. Accordingly, more than one second workstation 844 maybe connected to the second network 806. The bridge 808 allows certainsignals to pass from one network to the other. In particular, the bridge808 allows a journalist working on one of the first workstations 842 tosend a generated composition, i.e., one or more data structures thatdefine a story, to an editor working on one of the second workstations844.

Since the system 800 includes more than one low resolution encoder 812and more than one high resolution encoder 816, as illustrated in FIG. 5,the system 800 can capture, encode and store both low resolution andhigh resolution versions of more than one audio/video feedsimultaneously. The capture manager 814 maintains control of themultiple encoding sessions simultaneously. For example, the input 802may have a first terminal that is connected to a satellite feed so thatthe satellite feed can be encoded and stored by the system 800. Theinput 802 may have a second terminal that is connected to a live cameraso that the camera feed can be encoded and stored simultaneously by thesystem 800.

According to embodiments of the invention, a user can view and edit anencoded version of an audio/video feed while the encoded version isbeing encoded and stored in a file on one of the video servers. Inaccordance with these embodiments, a system 890 includes an encoder, abrowse server, and a workstation, as shown in FIG. 6. These devices canbe a portion of the multicast system 800 of FIG. 5.

The first video server 832 illustrated in FIG. 5 is suitable as thebrowse server 832 in FIG. 6. The browse server 832 includes a buffercache 870 and disk-based memory 880, as shown in FIG. 6. As the browseserver 832 receives an encoded version of an audio/video feed from thelow resolution video encoder 812, portions of the encoded version areinitially cached in the buffer cache 870 by the browse server'soperating system. The operating system writes, i.e., flushes theseportions from the buffer cache 870 to a file on the disk-based memory880. As the operating system writes the portions to the memory, theoperating system simultaneously sends network packets including theseportions onto the network 804 to one or more workstations 854 forviewing and possible editing if a request for the encoded version isreceived from the one or more workstations 854.

In one embodiment of the invention, the browse server 832 uses theWindows NT operating system available from Microsoft, Corporation,Redmond, Wash., which permits data to be stored into a file, andsimultaneously read from the file without file contention problems. Thesystem 890 utilizes file access operations provided by the Windows NToperating system so that multimedia data can be flushed from buffercache 870 to the disk-based memory 880, and simultaneously sent to oneor more workstations 842 through the network 804. In particular,according to an embodiment of the invention, the system utilizes afeature of the NT file system providing the ability to read data from afile while data is appended to the file.

In one embodiment, the portions are multicast (or “pushed”) over thenetwork 804, and any workstations 842 wishing to have access to theportions simply register a request with the browse server 832. Then, thebrowse server multicasts the portions to the workstations 842 over thenetwork 804 using IP multicasting as the browse server simultaneouslystores the portions.

In another embodiment, the browse server 832 responds specifically toindividual requests for encoded portions, i.e., the portions are“pulled” from the browse server 832 to the workstation 842. In thisembodiment, the browse server 832 functions as a web server by providingpackets of information onto a computer network in response to individualrequests from various workstations 842. In particular, when aworkstation 842 wishes to receive a portion of the encoded version ofmultimedia data, the workstation 842 sends a request onto the network804 that is received by the browse server 832. The browse server 832responds by sending a network packet containing a portion of the encodedversion back to the workstation 842 substantially simultaneously as theencoded version is stored into a file on the browse server 832.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, the workstation 842performs the method 1000 illustrated in FIG. 7. In step 1002, theworkstation 842 sends a request to the browse server 832 for one or moreportions of the encoded version that is being simultaneously stored inthe browse server 832. In step 1004, the workstation 842 waits until itreceives portions of the encoded version from the browse server 832 inresponse to the request. In step 1006, the workstation 842 receives andplays one or more portions, and determines when to send a next requestfor more portions. The time for sending a next request depends on boththe amount of video data received, e.g., the number of portions, and thetime it took between sending the request and receiving the data. In step1006, the workstation sends the next request expecting to receive one ormore new portions of the encoded version a predetermined amount of timebefore the workstation 842 is through playing the earlier receivedportions. Accordingly, the workstation 842 attempts to maintain somepredetermined amount of lead time. In one embodiment, this lead time isapproximately 0.5 seconds so that the workstation 842 sends the nextrequest expecting that the next portions will be received 0.5 secondsbefore the previous portion is through playing. In step 1008, theworkstation 842 checks whether the end of the file that stores theencoded version has been reached. If so, the method 1000 terminates.Otherwise, the workstation 842 repeats the method 1000.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, the workstation 842uses an active reader thread to acquire the new portions. If more than 6seconds worth of material is stored by the workstation 842, the readerthread sleeps for a predetermined amount of time or until it isactivated.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, the browse server 832performs the method 1100 illustrated in FIG. 8. In step 1102, the browseserver 832 opens a file to store the encoded version of multimedia data.In step 1104, the browse server 832 polls the network 804 for requestsfor portions of the encoded version, and when a request is received fromthe workstation 842, the browse server 832 sends one or more portions ofthe encoded version to the workstation 842. The browse server 832 cantrack which portions of the encoded version have been sent to theworkstation 842 and which portions to send in response to the nextrequest. In particular, if the workstation 842 includes anidentification ID with its request, the browse server 832 can use the IDto find determine which file and which read block need to be accessed,and then send the read block and other information such as timecode andlength information of the portion or portions of the encoded versiondefined by the read block. Alternatively, the workstation 842 trackswhich portions of the encoded version are needed next, and sends anindication of which portions it needs with the next request. In step1106, the browse server 832 determines whether the encoded version hasbeen completely stored, e.g., whether the encoder 812 has been stopped.If so, the browse server 1106 proceeds to step 1108 and closes the file,and sends an end of file indication along with any remaining unsentportions when a next request is received from the workstation 842.Otherwise, the browse server 832 proceeds to step 1104 to continuepolling the network and storing the encoded version in the file.

It should be understood that the workstation 842 may be an Internetclient by having an IP address, and the browser server 832 iseffectively a server, such as an http server or other kind of serverthat uses the TCP/IP protocol. According to a preferred embodiment,communications between the workstation 842 and the browse server 832 are“connectionless.” That is, the requests sent from the workstation 842 tothe browse server 832 establish a connection only for the period of timerequired to transmit network packets of the request. Similarly, anotherconnection is established between the browse server 832 and theworkstation 842 for transfer of one or more portions of the encodedversion across the network 804. Otherwise, no connection exists, i.e.,no connection stream remains open.

In one embodiment, http server software may be used by the browse server832 to handle responses from the workstations 842 which are configuredas web hosts. Such software is Microsoft Internet Information Server, orMicrosoft Peer Web Services, available from Microsoft, Corporation,Redmond, Wash.

Using either of the foregoing embodiments, a journalist working at theworkstation 842 may view and edit an encoded version of the multimediadata while it is being stored in the browse server 832. Accordingly, thejournalist may prepare a composition that includes portions of anencoded version of multimedia data, while the multimedia data is beingsimultaneously stored in a browse server. Furthermore, the journalist isnot burdened with having to store the encoded version in multiple fileson the same browse server 832. Portions of the encoded version on theworkstations 842 can be accessed with a maximum of 5 seconds of delayfrom the time the audio/video feed is first provided to the input 802.

Each journalist may create a recording session and maintain control ofthe recording session using a graphical user interface of the capturemanager 814. This user interface also includes some access features(e.g., viewing and editing capabilities described above) allowing thejournalist to access portions of an encoded version as the encodedversion is being simultaneously recorded and stored. An example of thegraphical user interface is illustrated in FIG. 9. The interface is inthe form of a dialog window 900 that includes one or more property pagedisplaying one or more respective encoding configurations. Each propertypages includes buttons that enable the user to send commands andinformation to the capture manager 814 using conventional input methodswith a mouse and a keyboard. Other conventional input mechanisms can besubstituted for the mouse and keyboard. In the particular example shownin FIG. 9, the dialog window 900 has six property pages named: NetworkFeed1, Network Feed2, Archive VTR, Projects VTR, Satellite Feed1, andSatellite Feed2. The property page for Network Feed1 is shown as beingpresently in the foreground by “Network Feed1” being displayed as thesource 902. The other property pages are shown in the background bytables 940 with their respective names. In this particular example, thehigh resolution encoder 816 is named “Jupiter” and the low resolutionencoder is named “MR1”. The bottom area 904 of the dialog window 900displays a plurality of buttons including an “Exit” button 906 forexiting the graphical user interface of the capture manager 814, a “New”button 908 for creating a new property page for a new encodingconfiguration, a “Delete” button 910 for deleting a property page, and a“Help” button 912 for obtaining help through a help window (not shown).

The dialog window 900 further displays recording status informationincluding an elapsed time 914 of the encoding session, a start time 916that is assigned to the encoded version of the multimedia data beingstored, a recorded headframe 918 that is used as a graphical imagerepresentation of the encoded version, and a flashing status 920 thatindicates a current state of the encoding session.

The dialog window 900 further displays additional control buttonsdepending on the configuration of the encoding session as identified byits property page. For example, as shown in FIG. 9, the Network Feed1property page includes encoder control buttons 922: “Standby” 924,“Start” 926 and “Stop” 928, that allow the user to respectively pause,start and stop an encoding session. The Network Feed1 property pagefurther includes a “Previewer” (not shown) that allows the user to viewprogress of the encoding session, a “Synchronizer” 932 that allows theuser to advance to the end of the currently encoded video to view thelatest results of the encoding session, a “Metadata Edit Controller” 930that allows the user to view and modify portions of the encoded version,and a “Headframe Grabber” 934 that allows the user to select, as theheadframe for the encoded version, any frame in the encoded version thathas been stored.

Some of the operations of the capture manager 814 will described infurther detail. Each of the property pages in the dialog window 900 istabbed, as shown in the area 940 of FIG. 9. When the user selects one ofthe tabs, the capture manager 814 displays the property page associatedwith the selected tab in the foreground of the dialog window 900. If theuser cannot find an appropriate configuration to select and determinesthat a new configuration is needed, the user may create a newconfiguration and a new property page associated with the newconfiguration by pressing the “New” button 908. The capture manager 814will respond by prompting the user for information regarding the newconfiguration until it has enough information to begin a new encodingsession. The capture manager 814 begins encoding when the user selectsthe “Start” button 926. In particular, the capture manager 814 sends asignal to the low resolution encoder 812 through connection 820 (seeFIG. 5) causing it to begin encoding. Alternatively, the capture manager814 sends this signal to the low resolution encoder 812 when the capturemanager 814 receives a signal from the high resolution encoder 816through connection 818 indicating that the high resolution encoder 816has started encoding. Accordingly, if the user has started the highresolution encoder 818, the low resolution encoder 812 is startedautomatically and simultaneously.

It should be understood that the user interface enable a journalist tocontrol multiple live feeds simultaneously from one graphicsworkstation. When an operation is desired for one of the encodingsessions, the journalist brings the property page for that encodingsession to the foreground in the dialog window 900 and performs thedesired operations. Then, the journalist can perform an operation on adifferent encoding session by bring it to the foreground.

The journalist using the capture manager's dialog window 900 can viewany portion of the encoded version as long as it has been stored in afile in the browse server 832. In particular, the journalist may jump tothe beginning of the version, jump to the middle of the version, andjump to the end of the version. All of these access methods can occurwhile browse server 832 continues storing additional portions of theencoded version in the same file.

Furthermore, the journalist may add markers to the portions of theencoded version in real time. The journalist is not required to waituntil an encoding session is over before viewing and marking multimediadata.

Another embodiment of the invention is directed to a multimedia newsroomproduction system 90, as illustrated in FIG. 10. This system isdescribed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/631,441, filed on Apr.12, 1996, which is hereby incorporated by reference. The newsroomproduction system 90 enables a news production organization tomanipulate effectively multimedia data to generate news stories forbroadcasting. Each generated news story may include several broadcastquality motion video clips from various sources. The system 90 includesthree major systems, a core newsroom system 100, a multimedia archive200, and a video production system 300.

In one embodiment, the components of the systems are interconnectedthrough a single digital network. Preferably, the single digital networkis a 100 Mb/s network.

In another embodiment, the components of the core newsroom system andthe multimedia archive are interconnected using a first digital network400, and the components of the video production system areinterconnected with a second digital network 410. An adaptor box 420 isconnected to both the first digital network 400 and the second digitalnetworks 410 to enable communication between the two networks. In apreferred embodiment of the invention, the first digital network 400 isimplemented using an Ethernet system having a data rate equal to, orgreater than, 100 Mb/s, and the second digital network 410 isimplemented using an Ethernet system having a data rate equal to, orgreater than, 10 Mb/s. The adaptor box 420 may be implemented using oneof a number of commercially available products such as a FastNet 10available from Cabletron Systems, Inc, Rochester, N.H.

Each of the major components of the newsroom production system 90 isdescribed in greater detail below.

VIDEO PRODUCTION SYSTEM 300

The video production system 300 provides audio/video capture, media dataediting, and management and control of high quality multimedia datasuitable for broadcast. The multimedia data can be any form ofinformation that can be represented in a digital form. The videoproduction system includes a digital playback system 310, a video editor320, a media recorder 330 connected to an MPEG encoder 340, a mediaserver 350 including an asset manager 360, a high bandwidth data network364, and a graphics workstation 370.

The media server 350 is a large scale computer that stores and delivershigh quality audio and motion JPEG video (MJPEG), suitable forbroadcast, in conjunction with the other devices of the video productionsystem 300. The media server 350 can also function as an archive systemfor multimedia data produced in the video production system 300. In apreferred embodiment of the invention, additional near-line storage andoff-line storage is provided on a digital data storage medium, such astape or optical disks, to relieve the media server of archiveresponsibilities to provide additional on-line storage capabilitieswithin the media server 350.

An asset manager 360 is an integral part of the media server 350 and isimplemented as software in the media server 350. The asset manager 360stores information and is the tool used to manage the data stored in thenear-line storage and the off-line storage. The material stored in themedia archive can be automatically moved to on-line status on the mediaserver by the asset manager 360. The asset manager 360 contains searchsupport data for locating media objects stored in the media server 350,in the near-line storage system and in the off-line storage system. Theasset manager 360 also contains composition information that can be usedto capture, edit, and play back the media objects stored in the mediaserver 350. As described below in greater detail, the media server 350also provides translation of low resolution media data compositions,generated within the core newsroom system, to high resolution media datacompositions for editing and playback within the video productionsystem. In a preferred embodiment, the media server 350 is implementedusing an Avid MediaServer™ available from Avid Technology, Inc.,Tewksbury, Mass.

The media recorder 330 is a disk-based digital recording workstationwhich is used to capture audio/video data and provide digitization andcompression of the audio/video data. The media recorder 330 digitizes,compresses and records audio/video material and transmits the digitizedcompressed data to the media server over the high speed network forstorage on the media server 350.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the media recorder 330 usesan MJPEG encoding scheme to generate high quality, high resolution,compressed digital data suitable for broadcast. In the preferredembodiment, an MPEG encoder 340 is coupled to the media recorder 330 toalso provide MPEG compression capability. As described in greater detailbelow, the addition of the MPEG encoder 340 to the media recorder 330provides the system with a dual-digitizing capability for media datarecorded by the media recorder 330. The MPEG encoder provides greatercompression of the data than the media recorder 330, thereby allowingthe data to be efficiently transmitted over the Ethernet network 400 tobe played on the journalist workstations 110. As shown in FIG. 4 theMPEG encoder 340 has a direct connection to the digital network 400 toprovide MPEG encoded media data to the multimedia archive 200.

In a preferred embodiment, the media recorder 330 is implemented usingan Avid Media Recorder™ available from Avid Technology Inc., Tewksbury,Mass.

The video editor 320 is a full-feature, digital, non-linear videoediting workstation specifically tailored to provide functions for newsediting. The video editor provides editing of high resolution broadcastquality images provided by the media server 350. In a preferredembodiment, the video editor is implemented using a an Avid NewsCutter™or an Avid Media Composer®, both of which are available from AvidTechnology Inc., Tewksbury, Mass. The digital playback system 310 is adigital, disk-based playback system that manages the broadcast to air ofmultimedia data produced and stored within the video production system300. The digital playback system 310 plays materials stored eitherlocally or on the media server 350 in accordance with play listsgenerated from a program lineup created on one of the journalistworkstations 110 within the core newsroom system 100, or on aworkstation directly coupled to the video production system (not shown).In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the digital playback system310 is implemented using an Avid AirPlay® available from AvidTechnology, Inc., Tewksbury, Mass.

The high bandwidth network 364 provides high speed communication betweenthe components of the video production system 300. In a preferredembodiment of the invention, the high bandwidth network 364 isimplemented using an ATM network as described in co-pending U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 08/249,849, titled An Apparatus and ComputerImplemented Process For Providing Real-Time Multimedia Data Transport ina Distributed Computing System, which is incorporated herein byreference. The high bandwidth network 364 supports real time playback ofbroadcast quality MJPEG video and multi-track audio over fiber opticnetworks.

The graphics workstation 370 is used for generating and editing graphicsmaterial for broadcast from and storage in the video production system.In a preferred embodiment, the graphics workstation 370 is implementedusing a Matador Workstation available from Avid Technology, Inc.,Tewksbury, Mass.

It should be understood that the media recorder 330 and the MPEG encoder340 form a multimedia capture and encoding system, as illustrated in theembodiment of FIG. 3. In particular, the combination of the mediarecorder 330 and the MPEG encoder 340 captures multimedia data, andsubstantially simultaneously provides a first compressed version of themultimedia data having a first resolution (e.g., MPEG), and a secondcompressed version of the multimedia data having a second resolution(e.g., MJPEG) that is different than the first resolution.

It should be further understood that the graphics workstation 370 formsplayback circuitry 60 of a video editing and playback system 56, asillustrated in FIG. 3. In particular, the graphics workstation playscompositions that use compressed versions of multimedia data stored inthe media server 350. As will be described below, the compositions maybe generated by the core newsroom system 100 using different compressedversions of multimedia data stored in the multimedia archive system 200.

CORE NEWSROOM SYSTEM 100

The core newsroom system 100 consists primarily of a number ofjournalist workstations 110 and a pair of news servers 120. FIG. 10shows a newsroom system having three journalist workstations 110. Inembodiments of the invention, the number of workstations 110 actuallyused may be much greater than three, and the actual number of journalistworkstations 110 that may be used in the system is based on severalfactors including the amount of network activity generated by each userof the workstations and by the amount of delay each user will toleratein accessing the system.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, each of the journalistworkstations 110 is implemented using an MPC III compliant workstation.

The journalist workstation 110 provides access to multimedia data from avariety of sources and includes the tools (i.e. software) necessary tocreate a multimedia storyboard of a news story for broadcast. Themultimedia data available to the journalist includes the low resolutionMPEG video data captured by the media recorder. In one embodiment of theinvention, each of the journalist workstations 110 includes a video portfor receiving video from, for example, a VTR. Each of the journalistworkstations 110 also includes a serial port for controlling the VTR.The graphics user interface of the journalist workstation 110 and thefunctions available to a user of the journalist workstation 110 aredescribed in greater detail below.

The news server 120 provide management and storage of the multimediadata in the newsroom environment. The news servers 120 are configured asdistributed processors with mirrored data bases to provide maximumreliability and performance. Other centralized functions, such ascommunications functions, are managed by the news servers 120. In apreferred embodiment, the news servers 120 are implemented using an AvidNewsServer available from Avid Technology, Inc., Tewksbury, Mass. Thenews servers 120 have external connections 122 for providing access tonews wire services and to allow remote access to the news servers 120from users external to the core newsroom system.

The core newsroom system 100 may also include one or more terminalservers 140 to provide connection to the digital network 400 for userterminals 130. The user terminals may be one of several differentterminals used in prior art systems primarily for text processing andcommunications functions. A device controller 150, or a number of devicecontrollers 150, may also be coupled to the digital network 400 toprovide control of several multimedia devices, such as teleprompters,from the journalist workstations.

It should be understood that a journalist workstation 110 of the corenewsroom system 100 in combination with a graphics workstation 370 ofthe video production system 300 form of a video editing and playbacksystem 76, as illustrated in the embodiment of FIG. 3. The journalistworkstation 110 forms editing circuitry 58 that generates a compositionthat uses a portion of a first compressed version of multimedia datahaving a first resolution. As stated above, the graphics workstation 370forms playback circuitry 60 that plays the composition using a portionof a second compressed version of the multimedia data stored in themedia server 350.

MULTIMEDIA ARCHIVE SYSTEM 200

The multimedia archive (MMA) 200 includes a library server 210 and oneor more object servers 220. The library server 210 holds catalog andsearch support meta data for locating objects stored in the multimediaarchive 200.

The object server 220 provides the primary storage media for browsingand archival of material generated during news gathering and productionprocesses. The object server 220 works in conjunction with the libraryserver 210 to facilitate distribution of multimedia material to thejournalist workstations 110. The objects stored in the multimediaarchive can be low resolution versions of video, audio, graphics, andtext. The MMA can be used to store finished stories, audio, video andother content for reuse in creating new stories. In a preferredembodiment, the multimedia archive 200 is implemented using the IBMDigital Library 5765-258.

It should be understood that the multimedia archive system 200 incombination with the media server 350 of the video production systemform a multimedia storage system 54, as illustrated in the embodiment ofFIG. 3. The multimedia archive system 200 and the media server 350 arecoupled to the media recorder 330 and the MPEG encoder 340 that form themultimedia capture and encoding system 52, and are further coupled tothe journalist workstations 110 and the graphics workstation 370 thatform the video editing and playback system 56. The multimedia archivesystem 200 and the media server 350 store multimedia informationincluding the first and second compressed versions of the multimediadata, which are described above.

OPERATION OF THE NEWSROOM PRODUCTION SYSTEM 90

The operation of the digital multimedia newsroom production system 90shown in FIG. 10 is described below. The operation of the system 90 canbe described as a collection of distinct function specific workloadscharacterized at a high level as asset creation, asset use, assetstorage, and asset administration. The system 90 provides the capabilityfor the following functions:

News wire text capture, storage, and catalog;

News story text creation, storage, and catalog;

High resolution video capture, edit, playout, storage and catalog;

Video production system low resolution media data editing;

Real-time dual resolution digitization, storage and catalog;

Low resolution video browsing and editing; and

High-resolution playout and editing of low resolution composition

Each of the functions described above, along with user interfaces foraccomplishing these functions, are described below in greater detail.

News Wire Text Capture, Storage and Catalog

The news servers 120 provide capability for capture and storage of newswire text data through the external interfaces 122. News wire textstories are captured by the news servers 120 and cataloged in a databaseof the news servers 120. A user of one of the journalist workstations110 may access the news servers databases as a system librarian tosearch, browse and retrieve the wire service data stored in thedatabases of the news servers 110. It is not generally necessary tostore all text stories captured by the news servers 110 in themultimedia archive 200. A system administrator may access the newsservers through one of the journalist workstations 110, browse thecatalog of data received from the news wires, determine what stories areappropriate for storage in the multimedia archive 200 and command thenews servers 120 to transfer selected data to the multimedia archive 200for storage.

News Story Text Creation, Storage. and Catalog

A user of the journalist workstation 110 can access text through thenews servers 120 and can create text and scripts from scratch or can useexisting text and scripts stored in the news servers 120 or in themultimedia archive 200 in the creation of text and scripts. The user cansearch, browse and retrieve text data stored in the news servers 120 andthe multimedia archive 200. The user can perform this searching andbrowsing using complex, full-text search techniques, thereby allowingefficient research by focusing the searching to retrieve dataspecifically relevant to the user's needs.

High Resolution Video Capture, Edit, Playout, Storage and Catalog

High resolution media data utilized by the video production system iscaptured in the system by the media recorder 330. The high resolutionmedia data is captured in the media recorder 330, digitized andcompressed using a broadcast quality compression technique such asMJPEG. The media data captured by the media recorder 330 is transferredin compressed form to the media server 350 and is registered and storedin the media server 350 by the asset manager 360. As discussed furtherbelow, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, a low resolutionversion of the media data is simultaneously created with the highresolution media data.

The high resolution media data can be browsed and edited using the videoeditor 320 and can be broadcast to air using the digital playback system310.

Video Production System Low Resolution Media Data Editing

As discussed above, low resolution video is used by the journalistworkstations 110 to provide limited editing capability. A user of thevideo production system 300, for example a user of the video editor 320,may wish to edit low resolution media data. The low resolution mediadata may either be a low resolution composition created by a user of ajournalist workstation 110 or a low resolution version of media datacaptured by the media recorder 330. In either case, the video productionsystem 300 user may search the multimedia archive 200 over the network400 or may search the asset manager 360 over the network 400 to retrievethe low resolution media data. After editing the low resolution mediadata, the video editor 320 may transfer edited low resolution media datato the multimedia archive 200 for cataloging and storage therein.

Real-time Dual Resolution Digitization, Storage and Catalog

As described above, news video production from the journalistworkstation 110 requires that an editable form of media data beavailable to a user of the journalist workstation 110. The lowresolution media data is stored in, cataloged by and retrieved from themultimedia archive 200. The low resolution media data is captured in thesystem 90 using the media recorder 330. The media recorder 330 performsa dual resolution digitization of media data to be captured by thesystem 90.

When media data is captured, the media recorder 330, in conjunction withthe MPEG encoder 340, performs a dual resolution digitization of themedia data to simultaneously produce a high resolution version of themedia data and a low resolution version of the media data. As discussedabove, the high resolution version of the media data is digitized andcompressed in a preferred embodiment using an MJPEG encoding format. Thelow resolution video is compressed in a preferred embodiment usingknown, high compression encoding techniques such as MPEG or Quick Time,available from Apple Computer, Inc, Cupertino, Calif. Although it ispreferred to use either MPEG or Quick Time, another compressiontechnique which results in a high compression ratio of the media datamay also be used. By performing simultaneous capture of both the highresolution version and the low resolution version of the media data,both forms of media data are immediately available in the system 90 sothat story editing can be performed to meet the stringent deadlinesencountered in broadcast news operations even with late breakingmaterial.

Low Resolution Video Browsing and Editing

One of the primary features of the system 90 shown in FIG. 10 is theability to provide a user of the journalist workstations 110 with lowresolution video to allow browsing and editing of the low resolutionvideo to create storyboards which may ultimately be used by an editorusing the video editor 320 to create broadcast quality media data. Thelow resolution editing feature allows the journalist to become moreinvolved in the finished media product and to incorporate archived mediadata into storyboards without the need for manual retrieval of videotapes and operation of a video tape player in an edit bay as in previoussystems.

A journalist, using the journalist workstation 110, can search the datacontained within the library server 210 of the multimedia archive 200for low resolution video data, audio data and text related to a storythat the journalist is composing on the journalist workstation 110. Inresponse to key search words provided by the journalist, the multimediaarchive provides a list of material contained therein related to the keywords. The journalist can then select media data for browsing or editingon the journalist workstation 110 from the list of material.

The graphics user interface for storyboard creation provided to thejournalist at the journalist workstation 110 is shown in FIG. 11. Theuser interface 500 includes a number of windows including a viewingwindow 510, a clipnotes window 520, a storyboard window 530, astorynotes window 540 and a script window 550.

The script window 550 provides an area in which the journalist can writethe main script of a story being composed on the journalist workstation110. Text can be generated in this window using standard word processingcommands. Graphics, including painting functions, can be performed onthe journalist workstation 110 and incorporated into the storyboard.

The viewing window 510 displays a low resolution video component of lowresolution media data to be viewed and edited on the journalistworkstation 110. The viewing window also displays the time code 516 ofthe video being displayed, machine controls 518, and editing functionssuch as mark in 512 a and mark out 512 b buttons. The machine controls518 provide controls for playing a video clip in the viewing window andare similar to standard VTR controls. The machine controls can beselected by the user using a pointing device, such as a mouse, or byusing special function keys on a keyboard of the journalist workstation110. Selecting a clip for display in the viewing window may be done bydragging a clip from the storyboard window 530 (described below) or byselecting a new clip from the multimedia archive 200.

A second viewing window can be opened on the screen at the same time asthe viewing window 510. The second viewing window, in a preferredembodiment, is made visible by either shrinking or eliminating thestorynotes window 540.

The mark in button 512 a and the mark out button 512 b are super-imposedin the upper left and upper right corners of the viewing window. Thesebuttons are used to perform editing functions at the journalistworkstation 110. When a video clip is being played in the viewing window510, audio data associated with the video data is played on speakers ofthe journalist workstation 110. A “video only” or “audio only”indication will appear on the video window when the media data beingdisplayed or played on the workstation consists of audio only or videoonly.

The clipnotes window 520 provides a note pad for entry of short notesfor each clip viewed on the viewing window 510. The storynotes window540 provides an area for the entry of notes that apply to the wholestory to be edited as opposed to the clipnotes window 510 which is fornotes on individual clips.

The storyboard window 530 allows clips and subclips to be laid out insequence. Each of the clips 532 shown in the storyboard window 530typically show the first frame of a corresponding clip, however, theuser may select a frame other than the first frame to be shown in thestoryboard window. The collection of clips stored in the storyboardwindow are referred to as a bin. The journalist has the option ofplaying one of the clips in the viewing window or playing the bin ofclips as arranged in the storyboard window.

The final pre-edited composition contained on the journalist workstation110 may be transferred to the multimedia archive 200 for reuse by thejournalist or other journalists on other journalist workstations 110 andfor final editing and playout by a user of the video production system300.

High Resolution Playout and Editing of Low Resolution Compositions

A composition produced during a low resolution activity on a journalistworkstation 110 may be played out in different ways. A user of ajournalist workstation 110 may play the low resolution composition byretrieving the composition data from the multimedia archive 200, or auser of the video production system 300, for example a user of the videoeditor 320, may play and edit a high resolution version of thecomposition. The translation of the low resolution composition to itshigh resolution equivalent is transparent to the user of the videoeditor 320. The asset manager 360 using registration information of eachof the low resolution sources used in the composition can identify theequivalent high resolution sources and translate the low resolutioncomposition into its high resolution equivalent. Efficient translationby the asset manager 360 requires a unique registration system for eachof the clips stored within the system. Further, the registration methodmust include means for identifying the corresponding high resolutionversion of low resolution media data. A preferred registration method isdescribed in detail further below.

An editor, using the video editor 320, receives the high resolutionversion of the low resolution composition created by the journalist, andcan further edit the composition in broadcast quality format, to providemore precise editing cuts than accomplished by the journalist.

In order to provide efficient transmission and storage of media data inthe system shown in FIG. 10, a standard file structure is used for themedia data contained within the system. In one embodiment of theinvention, the media data is organized in a media container 600 as shownin FIG. 12. The media container 600 is divided into five subsectionsincluding container data 610, container timing 620, media security 630,meta data 640 and media or media pointers 650.

The information contained within the container data 610 describes thecontainer itself and may include the following information: the name ofthe person that created the container data; the name of the person thatapproved the container data; an identification of the containersecurity; a creation time stamp; the name of all people that havemodified the data; a modification time stamp; a user's log; costinformation associated with the data; and other user defined elements.

Container timing 620 includes information related to a relationship overtime of the media in the container. This information is only applicableto a story being prepared for broadcast.

The media security segment 630 provides further information concerningthe security level of the media contained within the container. Thisinformation can be used to restrict access to specified personnel ofmedia contained within the container.

The meta data information describes the media stored in the container.In one embodiment, the meta data contains the following information foreach media object in the container: the name of the person that approvedthe data; the name of the person that created the data; a creation timestamp; a media identifier; media status; media type; names of all peoplethat have modified the data; a modification time stamp; a referencenumber; research descriptors; timing information; title; and other userdefined elements.

The media and media pointers 65 are the actual raw data stored in thecontainer. Media objects of many types may be stored in a singlecontainer. The media pointers point to a media object stored in anothercontainer. By storing a media pointer to another container, rather thanthe media of the other container itself, maximum storage efficiency canbe attained throughout the system.

File structures, other than the container file structure describedabove, may be used for storing the media data in the digital multimedianewsroom production system. For example, the Open Media Framework (OMF™)file structure, described in Avid Technology, Inc. publication OMF™Interchange Specification, which is incorporated herein by reference,may be used as the file structure for media files in the system. Thefile structure described in Published PCT Application WO 93/21636, AMethod and Apparatus For Representing and Editing MultimediaCompositions, incorporated herein by reference, may also be used inembodiments of the invention.

Another feature of the system shown in FIG. 10 is the ability touniquely identify the media objects stored within the system and tolocate other versions of media data that correspond to the mediaobjects. The ability of the system 90 to locate a high resolutionversion of media data, corresponding to a low resolution version of thesame media data, allows the asset manager 360 to provide a highresolution translation of combinations or storyboards generated by thejournalist workstation 110, such that the translation is transparent toan editor using the video editor 320.

The asset manager can uniquely identify the low resolution and highresolution media data in a number of ways. In one embodiment of theinvention, the media data, when captured by the media recorder 330, isassigned a unique time code stamp corresponding to the date and timethat the media data is captured by the media recorder 330. Using thisscheme, the low resolution version of the media data and the highresolution version of the media data is assigned the same identificationnumber. However, since the low resolution media data is stored in themultimedia archive 200, and the high resolution media data is stored inthe media server, there is no opportunity for confusion between theversions of the media data. The asset manager, in translating acombination or storyboard from a low resolution version to a highresolution version, can locate the high resolution version of each mediaobject of the combination in the media server based on theidentification number of the corresponding low resolution version of themedia object. The above-described media data identifying method is notpreferred for use at broadcast locations that do not maintain a uniquetimecode stamp.

In one embodiment of the invention, the asset manager 360 may beimplemented using Media File Manager (MFM) and Source Manager (SM)software as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,267,351 to Reber et al which isincorporated herein by reference. This software provides a uniqueidentifier to media data captured by the system and maintains a table ofrelationships between media objects contained within the system suchthat the asset manager 360 can identify a corresponding version of lowresolution or high resolution media data.

In an alternate embodiment of the invention, a digital multimedianewsroom production system consists only of the core newsroom system 100and the multimedia archive system 200 coupled by the digital network400. In this alternate embodiment, a low resolution capture device iscoupled to the network 400 to capture low resolution media data forstorage in the news servers 120 and the multimedia archive system 200.In this embodiment, the journalist workstations 110 provide the fullstoryboard functions described above with respect to the system 90 shownin FIG. 10.

Embodiments of the invention overcome limitations of prior art systemsby providing a fully integrated digital multimedia newsroom. Inembodiments of the invention, a journalist in a newsroom may create amultimedia storyboard of a news story which is electronicallytransferred over a digital network to an editing and production systemfor final editing and broadcast to air. Embodiments of the inventionhave been described with respect to a multimedia production system in anewsroom environment, however, embodiments of the invention are notlimited to a newsroom environment, but rather may be used in othermultimedia environments as well, such as radio, and in the production ofentertainment programming.

In embodiments of the invention described above, the multimedia dataprocessed on the journalist workstation 110 has been described as lowresolution multimedia data. The user interface provided by thejournalist workstation 110 may also be used to create storyboards usinghigh resolution multimedia data.

Furthermore, the embodiments have been described in a newsroom context.However, the invention may be applied anywhere in the movie, televisionand cable industry, where multimedia data, and particularly, motionvideo data, is to be processed. In particular, the invention is suitablefor active movie systems, video conferencing, and cable pay per viewsystems.

Having thus described at least one illustrative embodiment of theinvention, various alterations, modifications and improvements willreadily occur to those skilled in the art. Such alterations,modifications and improvements are intended to be within the scope andspirit of the invention. Accordingly, the foregoing description by wayof example only, it is not intended as limiting. The invention's limitis defined only in the claims and the equivalents thereto.

What is claimed is:
 1. A multimedia system, comprising: a multimediacapture and encoding system that captures multimedia data, andsubstantially simultaneously provides a compressed version of themultimedia data having a first resolution; a multimedia storage system,coupled to the multimedia capture and encoding system, that storesmultimedia information including the compressed version of themultimedia data, and provides to a network the compressed version of themultimedia data substantially simultaneously as the compressed versionis stored; and a video host coupled to the network, that sends a firstrequest to the server for a first portion of the compressed version ofthe multimedia data, determines an amount of time to wait based on alength of the first portion and a response time of the first request,and sends a second request to the server for a second portion of thecompressed version of the multimedia data after waiting the determinedamount of time.
 2. The multimedia system of claim 1, wherein themultimedia system includes a server coupled to a network, that sends theencoded version of the multimedia data on the network in multicast form.3. The multimedia system of claim 1, wherein the multimedia systemincludes a server coupled to a network, that sends the encoded versionof the multimedia data on the network in response to a request from avideo host.
 4. The multimedia system of claim 1, wherein the multimediastorage system stores the compressed version of the multimedia data in afile.
 5. The multimedia system of claim 4, wherein the multimediastorage system stores the compressed version of the multimedia data in afile by appending to a compressed version of multimedia data stored inthe file.
 6. The multimedia system of claim 4, wherein the multimediastorage system stores the compressed version of the multimedia data in afile by storing the compressed version of the multimedia data to acomputer data file on a computer readable and writable random accessmedium.
 7. A multimedia system, comprising: means for capturingmultimedia data and substantially simultaneously providing a compressedversion of the multimedia data having a first resolution; means forstoring multimedia information including the compressed version of themultimedia data and providing to a network the compressed version of themultimedia data substantially simultaneously as the compressed versionis stored; means for sending a first request to the server for a firstportion of the compressed version of the multimedia data; means fordetermining an amount of time to wait based on a length of the firstportion and a response time of the first request; and means for sendinga second request to the server for a second portion of the compressedversion of the multimedia data after waiting the determined amount oftime.
 8. The multimedia system of claim 7, wherein the multimedia systemfurther includes means, coupled to a network, for sending the encodedversion of the multimedia data on the network in multicast form.
 9. Themultimedia system of claim 7, wherein the multimedia system furtherincludes: means, coupled to a network, for receiving a request from avideo host; and means, coupled to the network, for sending the encodedversion of the multimedia data video to the video host in response tothe request.
 10. The multimedia system of claim 9, wherein the means forstoring comprises means for storing the compressed version of themultimedia data to a file.
 11. The multimedia system of claim 10,wherein the means for storing the compressed version of the multimediadata to a file includes means for appending to a compressed version ofmultimedia data stored in the file.
 12. The multimedia system of claim10, wherein the means for storing the compressed version of themultimedia data to a file comprises means for storing the compressedversion of the multimedia data to a computer data file on a computerreadable and writable medium.
 13. A method for use in a multimediasystem, the method comprising: capturing multimedia data andsubstantially simultaneously providing a compressed version of themultimedia data having a first resolution; storing multimediainformation including the compressed version of the multimedia data andproviding to a network the compressed version of the multimedia datasubstantially simultaneously as the compressed version is stored;sending a first request to the server for a first portion of thecompressed version of the multimedia data; determining an amount of timeto wait based on a length of the first portion and a response time ofthe first request; and sending a second request to the server for asecond portion of the compressed version of the multimedia data afterwaiting the determined amount of time.
 14. The method of claim 13,further comprising sending the encoded version of the multimedia data ona network in multicast form.
 15. The method of claim 13, furthercomprising: receiving a request over a network from a video host; andsending the encoded version of the multimedia data video over thenetwork to the video host in response to the request.
 16. The method ofclaim 13, wherein the storing comprises storing the compressed versionof the multimedia data to a file.
 17. The method of claim 16, whereinthe storing the compressed version of the multimedia data to a fileincludes appending to a compressed version of multimedia data stored inthe file.
 18. The method of claim 17, wherein the storing the compressedversion of the multimedia data to a file includes storing the compressedversion of the multimedia data to a computer data file on a computerreadable and writable medium.
 19. A computer program product comprising:a computer readable medium; and information stored on the computerreadable medium indicative of a program to be executed by a computer tocarry out the method of: capturing multimedia data, and substantiallysimultaneously providing a compressed version of the multimedia datahaving a first resolution; storing multimedia information including thecompressed version of the multimedia data and providing to a network thecompressed version of the multimedia data substantially simultaneouslyas the compressed version is stored; sending a first request to theserver for a first portion of the compressed version of the multimediadata; determining an amount of time to wait based on a length of thefirst portion and a response time of the first request; and sending asecond request to the server for a second portion of the compressedversion of the multimedia data after waiting the determined amount oftime.
 20. The computer program product of claim 19, wherein method thefurther comprises sending the encoded version of the multimedia data ona network in multicast form.
 21. The computer program product of claim19, wherein method the further comprises: receiving a request over anetwork from a video host; and sending the encoded version of themultimedia data video over the network to the video host in response tothe request.
 22. The computer program product of claim 19, wherein thestoring comprises storing the compressed version of the multimedia datato a file.
 23. The computer program product of claim 22, wherein thestoring the compressed version of the multimedia data to a file includesappending to a compressed version of multimedia data stored in the file.24. The computer program product of claim 22, wherein the storing thecompressed version of the multimedia data to a file comprises storingthe compressed version of the multimedia data to a computer data file ona computer readable and writable medium.